1. Field
The disclosure relates generally to sharing an area of a screen of a data processing system and more specifically to sharing a subsection of the screen in a sharing session.
2. Description of the Related Art
Screen sharing allows users to share the contents of their computer display with remote colleagues and collaborators. However, depending on the content shown, bandwidth requirements for communication can be too high to accomplish sharing effectively. In many situations, users may only need to share a small portion of the total screen. Currently, this is accomplished by selectively sharing only a highlighted application window. In practical terms, this means that a user chooses to share, for example, the window associated with only a collaboration application and no other window of the desktop. Alternatively, screen-sharing applications may vary refresh rate or resolution of the shared screen. However, these options may not permit optimal display of the content, depending on the nature of what is being shared. Occasions may exist when sharing even one application window may be prohibitive for available bandwidth, particularly when the shared area contains motion or other aspects requiring heightened bandwidth. Further, while a user may try to reduce the size of a shared window, image quality and detail may suffer as a result.
Current solutions for sharing screen content between users are generalized with a “one size fits all” approach and do not adequately account for varying connection speeds. For example, when presentations are given using screen sharing software, the audio sent over a first network can get ahead of a display being shared over a second network due to bandwidth issues in the second network. Users may have to wait for the presentation to catch up. Further, users may only need to share a small area of the application screen that is relevant to a particular conversation.
Therefore, it would be advantageous to have a method and apparatus that takes into account at least some of the issues discussed above, as well as possibly other issues.